Hello

22 February 2019

Here's how it works: The Recent Releases chart brings together critical reaction to new albums from more than 50 sources worldwide. It's updated daily. Albums qualify with 5 reviews, and drop out after 6 weeks into the longer timespan charts.

Backstreet Boys in their 90s heyday. Who'd have thought they would grow up so "surprisingly mature" (All Music)

The week in ADM

Michael Palmer reflects on the week's notable album action in the ADM chart

We have an undisputed Chart Topper again! What relief. After a
week-long tussle, Kanye West's time ran out and he
dropped off the chart. Six weeks is all you get over here, no
exceptions. So El-P and Killer Mike's Run The
Jewels project now has some fresh air between it and the rest of
the pack, leaning over and sticking their neck out so that they
cross the line that little bit faster.

Their closest challengers are long-serving folk-star
Martin Simpson and LA hardcore post-rockers
The Icarus Line. Simpson's latest album (his 17th?
Maybe? It's difficult to tell) enters our chart with an even 8.0.
Four 8s and a 10 from The Arts Desk is a decent haul, but it's
early days yet. For the album. Not for Martin himself. He's had
plenty of days.

Every body! Yeah? Rock Your Body! What? Backstreet's back alright
with a 5.4. Album number 8 from Backstreet Boys
steers clear of our last page pretty much thanks to a 7 from All
Music. "Surprisingly mature" they say about a band of guys in their
40s. The rest of the reviews are in the expected 4-to-6 range that
fellow 90s boy band New Kids On The Block seemed
stuck in. Rather interesting is the fact that, with their 5.4, the
Backstreet Boys now have the same average as
Jay-Z. I wonder what Jay thinks about that?

There's more OBNM (Old Band New Music) news as
Medicine release their first album since breaking
up eighteen years ago. When they broke up the world population was
5.682 billion. That's, like, 1.4 billion less people than now.
Also, OJ Simpson was tried and found not guilty
that year, Forrest Gump won the Best Picture
Oscar, Blackburn Rovers won the English Premier
League and Lawrence Taylor defeated Bam
Bam Bigelow in the worst Wrestlemania main event of all
time. By miles. 1995 was actually a pretty huge year for
professional wrestling, but that's not really that important right
now. What is important is that Medicine's first album in eighteen
years charts with a 6.9. A handful of 8s making up for two 6s from
Mojo and The Line Of Best Fit.

Elsewhere: Alele Diane makes the top 10 and a 7.5
with her very personal 5th album, Luke Haines'
folk concept album turning rock icons into animals makes our front
page with a 7.3, as do Pond with a 7.2, and it's a
7.1 for Moderat, which is
Modeselektor making music with
Apparat.